


Just Like You

by Mistress_Kalamity



Series: My Heart's To Blame [9]
Category: Tokio Hotel
Genre: Epilepsy, Epilepsy Awareness, High School, M/M, Presentation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-05
Updated: 2016-11-05
Packaged: 2018-08-29 02:40:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,259
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8472364
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mistress_Kalamity/pseuds/Mistress_Kalamity
Summary: Milo is bored of her health class, claiming they don’t really teach anything but sex ed. In a burst of arrogance, Milo swears she can get her dad to speak for the class about epilepsy and epilepsy awareness and first aid, not knowing if Tom would say yes or not.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Here's the light hearted chapter I promised. It's not as emotionally nerve wracking as the earlier one shots.

She bounces her knee in boredom, watching the time tick away. This class, to Milo, is a huge colossal waste of time. The teacher barely taught and what did she teach, sex education. It wasn’t like Milo is unaware of sex ed, it’s just every time she gets planted in a health class, that’s all they teach and the nearly 15 year old is tired of it. She places her elbows down on the desk and balances her head on her open palms. She’s really sick of it. Not wanting to be there anymore, she closes her eyes and tries to imagine her three pointer shot that she made at the game two weeks prior. Her dad’s had been so proud of her. She hears the door open again and opens her eyes to see her friend, Hyland just sauntered. Hyland stands tall at 6’1 in the tenth grade. She’s the tallest girl on the team and the only American. Milo could be considered American but her parents were German. Hyland’s parents migrated here after her dad got a new job. The giant was drawn to Milo as soon as they met because very few people dared to enter a court with her. They were just too afraid. That didn’t happen when the hawaiian point guard. She stepped into that court and creamed her, thus building a lasting friendship.

 

“This class fucking blows,” Milo huffs as soon as her friend is seated next to her.

 

“Why? Is she demonstrating condom safety again with the banana?” Hyland chuckles. Milo never got her friend’s sense of humor. She kind of found jokes in everything, This class is far to annoying to Milo for her to make jokes. She just wished she could get out of it and go practice in the gym or go for a run or dive into Tom’s fluffy pancakes. Or hell plan her fifteenth birthday which was three months away. Just anything to get out of that room. The bell rings and she packs her stuff in an immediate hurry. The teen flies out the room and waits for Hyland outside the classroom. The two fall into step as they head to the gym for their free period.

 

“I swear to God, if I die it’s going to be in that classroom.”

 

“It’s not that bad, Milo.”

 

“Not that bad! Hy, she literally fell asleep last time. I can’t take this! How am I supposed to learn anything about health with my health teacher is a total dunce?!” Her larger friend shrugs her shoulders at the question. She didn’t really care. Health for Hyland meant a nap. If she ever got there on time, of course. They arrive at the gym and start tossing balls around and into the hoop. The coach blowing the whistle every time someone made a shot. She shoots the ball into the hoop when the counselor walks in and approaches the young girl. “Hey Mr. Devin,” she chirps to the man. He’s a proud supporter of the team, never missing a single game. Milo is one of his favorite players.

 

“Milo, can I talk with you for a second?” He asks, the expression on his face anything but pleasant. She passes the ball off to Hyland and follows the man out of the gym. Once outside, he takes a deep breath and sighs. “Do you know why I asked you to step outside here with me?”

 

“Uh no, sir. Am I failing a class or something?”

 

“No, but I have been hearing lots of complaints, mostly from you, about the nature of our Health Education course?”

 

“No offense, but in America, all we got was sex ed. I was under the impression that Europe had better health classes than this.” Milo admits to the older male. She wanted to learn about first aid and she wanted to learn more about health itself. As an athlete, health is always something she’s conscious of. The way she eats in different, the way she dresses, showers, even brushes her teeth is all for the sake of her athletic health, Milo never spends more than an hour in downtime when she’s not sleeping. “I’m pretty sure I could have a better class than that for one day,” she snorts.

 

“Really? Well, do you think you could do something for us? Can you get your dad to come in and host a presentation about his condition?” The counselor proposes. 

 

“My dad? I mean, he would do anything I ask of him if it’s positive and for the sake of my education or sports, so yeah I could get him to come in, most definitely.”

 

“Splendid! Have him call me as soon as you set a date and we can get everything prepared.” The man chirps, shaking Milo’s hand and walking away. Most likely, headed back to his office to write a staff email about the presentation. Milo is excited, her parents usually only come in to the school for conferences and games or when she got sick. This time her dad is going to show this school what a real health seminar is. She bounces back into the gym, grin plastered on her face. Hyland is tossing a ball at a wall to work on catching when she notices her excited friend. “What’s got you so happy?” Hyland asks, while tossing the ball to her.

 

“I just booked my dad as a speaker to talk about his epilepsy,” Milo chirps. Hyland catches Milo’s toss but holds onto the ball. She gets closer to her smaller friend and scratches her head. 

 

“Doesn’t he like, not like talking about his seizures?” she asks. Milo stops and thinks for a moment. Before she had the chance to realize it, she said yes. Tom hates talking about being an epileptic. In fact, it’s to the point where he tells everyone that Hunter is a therapy pet because he has an anxiety disorder. Milo has these thoughts in her head even when the school day ends and she’s waiting for either Mike or one of her dads to pick her up. Imagine her surprise when she sees her Uncle Bill behind the wheel of the car. 

 

“Uncle Bill? What are you doing here?” She asks, climbing in the audi.

 

“Your parents are busy with nonsense and asked me to drop by and get you since I am in town for the next couple weeks. Tour rehearsals and what not.” Bill smiles. She likes her uncle. He’s loud, fabulous and very doting. He loves taking the girls shopping, even little Sasha, who usually just wobbles under the racks to hide and play. He loves Tom’s kids and they love him just as much. “Are you alright? You look like me when I hear I have work to do,” he chuckles.

 

“Yeah, I just made a promise in someone else’s name before talking to them first and I am afraid that he’s gonna be mad.”

 

“By ‘he’ I take it you mean, your father, my brother?” Bill asks. Milo nods sadly and sighs. She knows he’s gonna say no. With the stress of the tour and the appearances that must be made, he is not going to stop any of that just to visit her school and talk about something he didn’t want to talk about. “What were you gonna ask him?” Bill asks as he turns onto her street. 

 

“I was gonna ask if he would mind doing a seminar on epilepsy, more specifically his epilepsy,” Milo mutters. Bill looks at her from the driver’s seat and smirks. He remembers how much Tom hates doing those. He said it himself, he didn’t want to become the poster child for epilepsy. He only told the world about his seizures but he didn’t want to become an advocate or do anything really because to him it all seemed pointless. Him standing tall isn’t going to find a cure faster, it’s only going to remind him that he’s still suffering at the hands of his disorder and he’d much rather his pain not be televised. “You think he’d say yes, if I asked?”

 

“I don’t know, champ. Tom’s very pissy about talking about his epilepsy. It’s kind of a pet peeve with him. He doesn’t want his face to be the one they put on cereal boxes and posters. I understand him but at the same time, I think it’ll be good for him, so you should ask,” Bill smiles. He parks the car and she climbs out. Bill is a few steps behind her and she can see Mike playing with Hunter, for recreational purposes the dog needs to get exercise and Tom’s busy inside with Georg so it’s fine. The teen walks into her home and catches her father about take his guitar up to the room when he sees his oldest child stroll in.

 

“Hey Mi, how was school?” He asks.

 

“Great, uh can I talk to you about something?”

 

“Are you in trouble?” Tom asks, putting his guitar case down on the floor by his feet. 

 

“No, no. Nothing like that, it’s just….I kind of, without thinking about it, told the school’s educational counselor that you would give a presentation for epilepsy awareness month at my school.” Tom’s face grows incredibly long. He pulls his daughter into the kitchen and makes her sit down. Once across from her, he places his hands on the table. She had never seen her dad this way before. He looked so tormented with the response. Tom truly wanted to say yes to his daughter, that’d he go and stand there and be the literal embodiment of his condition and speak on it but….”Sweetheart, you understand why I can’t….do that, right?”

 

“Uncle Bill told me you’d say no,” Milo sighs sadly.

 

“I’m so sorry, honey. I just….I don’t want to put my face to a condition that affects so many and that I am humiliated by. I am not proud to have this and frankly, I wish I didn’t. I do and I am coping with it but I can’t stand there and pretend everything’s okay and normal when it’s fucking not,” Tom states, clearly bothered by his own response.

 

“No, daddy, I get it. It was wrong of me to tell the school counselor you would before talking to you first.” Tom bites his lip and sighs. He really wanted to make her happy but he just didn’t feel right being a celebrity endorser of anything that affected others. He hated when they did that Epilepsy Foundation benefit. He hated doing that Artists Against Aids thing too. To him, someone, just because they’re in the limelight, shouldn’t put their face on something they don’t have interest in. Sure, he liked that the band got their own brand of condoms and it was kind of funny to him but he still didn’t want to join a cause that genuinely he knew nothing about. He just collected a check and it bugged him. 

 

“I should email him and let him know you said no,” Milo says as she rises from her seat to go up to her room. Tom doesn’t stop her, he made up his mind. Bill hears the conversation from the door and isn’t having it. There’s no way Tom is going to turn this down. His twin understood how much his disorder bothered him and he didn’t like that Tom suffered in silence. Bill walks right in after Milo and stops her in the doorway.

 

“Don’t email him just yet, I can convince him to change his mind, just give me the day. If not, then email your counselor,” Bill whispers in her ear. Milo nods and goes up to her room. The blonde twin steps into the kitchen and sees his twin with his face covered by his hands. He goes over to the coffee pot and pours a cup. “I don’t see why you don’t help your daughter out and do the stupid thing,” Bill snorts. 

 

“You don’t get it. You like attention, Bill. Whether it be negative or positive. I am not putting my face on something I am ashamed of,” Tom mutters.

 

“ _Why_ are you ashamed, is my question. I mean, I know seizures aren’t a walk in the park but you’ve still got no reason to be ashamed,” Bill sighs while sitting down next to his brother. He places a slim hand on his bicep and tries to meet Tom’s eyes. They haven’t really talked about his epilepsy and how it made him feel in a while. He knew that Tom hates having it and that’s the bottom line.

 

“Bill, imagine being 16 and waking up on the floor, in your own piss. There’s blood, mucus, and spit all over your face and hair. Someone is holding you on your side and you can barely breathe, forget about words. That’s what this is like, it’s just embarrassing,” Tom starts. “Every time I have a seizure, every time, I always have to deal with the humiliation that follows after. My own husband has to clean me up like some child. I can’t speak for days sometimes because my mouth hurts and I can’t….look I just hate epilepsy and I don’t want to tie my face to it.” 

 

“Tom, I get that but don’t you think that’s why you should tie your face to it,” Bill smiles. Tom looks at his brother, flabbergasted. Did he not just hear what came out of his mouth? Why would humiliation drive him to talk about it? Bill is a strange one. The younger twin takes a sip of his coffee and then turns back his brother. “It’s humiliating and millions of people feel that way. They don’t like it either. They don’t like being confused. They don’t like waking up in their own piss. They don’t like having to take medication every single day of their lives. They fight because they want someone to hear them cry out for help and fucking help them. If you tie your face to epilepsy, it’s not because you appreciate it. It’s because you fucking hate it and want it to stop,” Bill rants. Tom’s face drastically changes. While Bill is a nutjob, he’s also incredibly smart. He knows what living in the shadows is like, the fear of being humiliated because of something that’s attached to you. His brother spoke earlier that year at a domestic abuse and drug dependency forum. It took a lot of convincing but eventually he just reopened the can of worms and he felt better immediately after. 

 

“Bill, I just….I’m afraid. What if, I don’t know, everyone loses faith in me. You know, they’ll worry about me flaking because of my seizures or they won’t trust us to give a decent show or…” Tom rambles.

 

“Tom, stop it! No one is going to lose faith in you. Your medication works, you have a seizure alert dog, a loving husband and two beautiful daughters.You’ve proved that you can have some normalcy in your life. Do the presentation for your daughter, if anything, we can also perform an acoustic set, make it a real treat,” Bill smiles. With a sigh, Tom gets up from the kitchen table and goes up the stairs to his daughter’s room. She’s sitting on her bed, studying from what appears to be an Economics textbook.

 

“Smart idea to send your uncle after me,” Tom chuckles as he enters her room.

 

“I didn’t. He said he’d talk to you,” she smiles. Tom walks over to her bed and pushes the books aside to sit down. She crawls over and lays her head on her father’s lap. He gently combs his fingers through her curly hair. “Daddy, why didn’t you want to talk at my school?”

 

“I...I don’t know. I guess, I was ashamed. All your friends would laugh and, I don’t know, stop being your friend because of me,” Tom admits.

 

“Daddy, I don’t care about that.” 

 

“I know but….doesn’t mean I wasn’t worried about it. You guys are my world and I wouldn’t want anything to jeopardize you or your futures,” Tom mutters. Milo sits up and hugs her father, knocking them both back on the bed. 

 

“Daddy, don’t think for a second that I am not grateful for everything you did for me. I couldn’t stay in that….stupid, fucking orphanage one more day when you came. I was on the edge. You can’t watch your mother and father kill themselves every day and be okay after that. You and pop gave me a better life. So, if someone can’t appreciate me because of my dad’s uncontrollable illness, fuck them,” she whimpers. Tom wraps his arms around his daughter and tears flow from his eyes. Milo was a mess when they got her. 

 

_‘This is Miliani, her parents were not good people and she’s a bit of trouble. Sad too, she’s a great basketball player,’ the director, Mrs. Long, sighs. Tom looks at the folder in his hands at the pre teen._

_‘Is she here?’_

_‘Yes, she’s probably in the back shooting hoops,’ the kind woman smiles. Tom puts the folder down and walks out to the concrete hoop set up out back. There’s a girl tossing a ball into it repeatedly with her hair tied behind her neck. Tom removes his own sweater and once the ball lands near his feet when she misses he picks it up._

_‘Can I have my ball back?’_

_‘Miliani, right?’_

_‘Milo, I don’t use the name my mother gave me anymore.’_

_‘Why? It means gentle caress in hawaiian right?’ The girl looks at the man with a confused glance. Why was he even talking to her? Why would he even know that?_

_‘You’re a weird dude, can I get my ball back?’_

_‘How about this? We play. If you win, I’ll leave you alone. I win, you and I have a very important conversation.’ She looks at him skeptically but agrees. He tosses her the ball and the play a simple game of one - on - one. She is amazed at how well he moves. Tom hadn’t played in years but he was playing to the best of his ability. He wins, 9-6. She stops playing and looks up at the man. ‘So can we talk now?’ Tom asks after the game._

_‘Sure. What did you wanna talk about?’ She asks, wiping sweat from her brow._

_‘My husband and I are looking to start a family and….well, we want you as a part of it,’ Tom smiles. The preteen looks at him with the widest of eyes. She looked as if she was gonna cry._

_‘What?! Are you fucking serious?!’_

_‘Yes. I am fucking serious,’ Tom chirps. She drops the basketball and plunges herself into Tom’s body. He catches the crying girl and holds her tight._

_‘Thank you so much,’ she sobs._

~~~~~~

Tom stands nervously behind the curtain, looking over and over at the notecards in his hands. Georg is holding their daughter backstage as she sits on his lap and eats cut up grapes. Tom is happy that he is standing there, alive, able to watch Georg be gentle with their kids and watch his baby girl grow up. He catches Milo’s gaze from her place on stage. She’s going to present him when it’s time for him to talk. His nerves increase when his daughter stands, soft curls dripping down her slender back. She approaches the podium and opens her mouth. Bill stands behind his twin, moral support of course. He pats his back and goes to tune his voice with Gustav by the piano.

 

“Today, we are here to show our support in the fight against epilepsy. Epilepsy affects millions of people including my father and guitarist of Tokio Hotel, Tom Kaulitz. He’s here today to speak to all us but first, let me introduce him. At the age of 7, he and his brother, my uncle, Bill started their music endeavours and now 20 years later, he’s achieved international success, he’s happily married and he’s my father. Ladies and gentlemen, Tom Kaulitz.” Tom walks out and everyone’s clapping, most of them being fans of his. He waves gently and meets Milo at the podium. She hugs and he kisses her cheek, slipping his note cards into her hand. He didn’t want to have some scripted bullshit to read. He wanted to be original. “Hi, everyone,” he chirps after pleasantries. “So, my daughter came to me the other day and was like ‘daddy can you speak at my school’ and I was like ‘...uh….no’,” he chuckles. The audience laughs with him and he slowly gets more comfortable.

 

“But seriously, epilepsy is no joke. There are days, you know, where things are really hard. Like a few days ago, I almost dropped my youngest daughter because of a seizure. People like me don’t enjoy having seizures. I know they’re often treated as jokes and whatnot but it’s really not funny. Some people can’t drive, work or even leave their homes because of how dangerous having seizures can be.

 

That’s why I have Hunter, my seizure alert dog, so I can be safe. I don’t wanna lecture you guys, I just wanted to put my face to this disorder because--after I talked with my brother I came to this conclusion of course--I hate it. Your friends, family, hell a stranger could have a seizure and it’s up to you to make sure that they’re safe. Don’t take advantage. If you have epilepsy, stand up for it. If people know that you hate it, then they’ll try to fix it. Never suffer in silence. I did and it’s the worst. I get it, I hate waking up in my own piss, drool on my face, confused. I hate it. So I will talk about it because then people researching it get more money and they get more attention and we get closer to a cure.

 

Okay, I am sure you’re all bored of me, uh there’s some epilepsy awareness and first aid notes down there but if you have any questions, I will answer any. If they’re personal, I will be down there on the floor soon.” Tom looks at the audience and a few hands shoot up. He answers all of them and waves as he walks off the stage. Milo hugs her dad at the steps and he’s tapped on the shoulder by a girl that Milo had seen around the school. Tom turns around and she half smiles. “Hello, did you want to ask me something?” Tom asks. 

 

“Uh, yeah, um, I uh, can we talk about this, somewhere else?” She stammers.

 

“What’s wrong?”

 

“I uh, I have epilepsy too and I wanted to say um, t---thank you, I guess,” she mumbles. Tom puts a hand on her shoulder and smiles warmly.

 

“I don’t want to be thanked. You don’t have to look to me for strength, you’re strong enough, okay?” He nods, trying to make sure she doesn’t idolize him too much for his words. The girl nods and then looks at Milo. The curly haired teen only waves and gets closer to the girl. “What’s your name?” Tom asks.

 

“Anya,” she replied, blush filling her cheeks. Tom smirks and then looks right at Milo. This girl could benefit from having a friend like Milo and Tom saw it. He steps back and lets Milo continue the conversation. He gets backstage and fluffs behind Hunter’s ears. Bill walks over and claps a hand on Tom’s shoulder. The older twin turns and looks at his brother. “Good job, Tomi,” Bill chirps.

 

“Thanks, I uh, I think we should get set up for the performance,” Tom smiles. “I need to get out of this stupid fucking suit.”

 

“No kidding. You look like dad during the divorce,” Bill smirks. Tom stands up to his full height and goes to change his clothes. He feels accomplished that he faced his hatred and did something to remedy his pain. He meets the rest of the group by the side of the stage while the crew sets up for their show. He takes a hold of the acoustic guitar and takes a deep breath. Once the set starts up, Tom gets into the feel of the songs and zones out into the music. His music is what kept him sane and he knew that nothing would make him feel like he did when he performed. Nothing could make him feel this good. He’d never abandon his music no matter what. It helped him forget that he had seizures and that every moment he had is a moment to treasure. After the show, the same girl drove back with Tom, Georg, Milo and Sasha back to their house, so she and Milo could hang out. 

 

“Tom, you were amazing,” Georg chirps when they are in their room alone. The girls, sleeping, Milo and Anya having an impromptu sleepover. Tom rolls over onto his husband, straddling him to the bed. “Someone’s feeling frisky,” Georg smiles.

 

“I think I deserve a _treat_ after all, I did speak to all those teenagers and made Milo a new friend,” Tom smirks as he leans down and kisses his husband. Georg puts his hands on Tom’s waist and rubs up and down his thighs. Getting a little giggle from the younger male. Tom reaches up over Georg’s head and turns off the light. “I love you baby.”


End file.
